Stranded
by pikapikatchu
Summary: Nick and Greg need to learn the hard way that it's not fun to be stuck in the desert.
1. Chapter 1

Hey guys!

This is my new story, I hope you like it! Let me know what you think about it!

Enjoy :)

* * *

><p>"No, Catherine, come on! Don't do this!" Nick said angrily.<p>

"I'm sorry, guys... But we can't risk anything with this case. Just do it. Please." Catherine had a frown on her face. She knew how much this annoyed Nick, but she had no other choice.

Nick sighed. "Alright..." He stormed off angrily. "Come on, Greg!" he shouted from outside the office.

Greg just gave Catherine a look and followed Nick.

Several weeks after Nick shot officer James, a man that helped terrorize the police and CSIs for quite some time and even murdered people, and saved his colleagues – and possibly a lot of other people, everything was back to normal again. Well, almost everything.

Nick and Greg were working on a new case. A woman was missing for several days now, and when Captain Brass interviewed the husband about it there were several contradictions in his story. Then Greg found a gun at the house, as well as a shirt that had gunshot residue and blood on it's sleeve. The case seemed to be pretty clear, and now a body was found in the desert that fits the woman's description. Nick and Greg were on their way to the scene, but the husband's defense attorney was questioning the CSIs work, a trick he used to try and keep his client out of jail.

They were sitting in Nick's car, not talking. He was angry and not in the mood to talk.

"Oh man, is the AC even turned on?" Julian said annoyed while pushing some buttons he thought belonged to the air conditioning.

"Would you keep your hands off this? Gosh!" Nick said roughly.

Catherine assigned Julian to Nick and Greg's case. The defense attorney accused the two of being reckless with collecting evidence and he demanded someone else be there when they collected anything connected to the case. Catherine chose Julian, since he was the most dispensable lab tech she knew. Of course neither Nick or Greg liked that, but Nick obviously was the one protesting the most.

"I'm sorry, but it's at least a 100 degree out there and even hotter in this car! And could we please change the radio station? I hate country music!"

"Julian, please, just shut up." Greg said from the back seat. Julian claimed that he'd get sick in the back seat so Greg sat in the back. That didn't help Nick much, but at least he'd not have to take care of a vomiting Julian, he thought.

Greg was just getting off the phone. "David's stuck at a crime scene, he'll join us later."

Julian sighed. "So what's this case about, anyway?"

Nick didn't answer, so Greg did. "It's actually pretty clear to us. Husband killed his cheating wife and dumped the body in the desert. That's why the defense attorney wants you to be there. He knows his client did it so he tries everything to keep him out of jail."

"So we're driving to the body right now?"

"Yeah. Have you seen one before?"

"Yeah, sure. I helped Ray out at a scene once." Julian smiled. He almost adored Ray and nobody really knew why, not even Ray.

After a long, long, really long drive, that actually wasn't that long but felt like it, thanks to Julian, they finally arrived. They already could see the patrol car that was waiting for them.

Nick was already driving really close to the car but didn't slow down.

"Uhm... Nick? You're going too fast," Greg said.

"I... I know, it won't slow down!" Nick said worried.

"Jesus, Nick. There's a pedal next to your feet, it's called a brake, hit it!" Julian said sarcastically.

"What do you think I'm doing, smart ass? It's not working! The steering wheel's blocked, too!" Nick quickly put the car in neutral to slow it down a bit, but couldn't prevent it from driving right into the patrol car.


	2. Chapter 2

After a loud bang there was silence for about a minute.

"...Are you alright?" Nick asked his two colleagues, turning around to see Greg and Julian.

Greg nodded with a shocked look on his face, and Julian answered with a quiet 'yes'.

Nick quickly got out the car. "Hello? Officer? Are you alright?" He took a look in the patrol car but no one was in it.

"I'm here!" The officer said. He was standing a few feet away from the car and didn't get hurt.

"Thank god you're okay... I'm sorry, the brakes didn't work and the steering wheel was blocked..."

"Are you alright?" he asked concerned.

Nick sighed. "We're okay... We're fine..."

Greg and Julian walked over to Nick and the officer. Julian had a few scratches on the right side of his face. The window on his side broke and a few glass fragments hit him in the face. He still had them stuck in his face but didn't notice. Greg hit the left side of his head when the car crashed and was bleeding a bit.

"Nick, your hand..." Greg said to him. "It doesn't look good, can you move it?"

Nick shook his head.

"He probably broke it, that's very common with driver in a car accident..." Julian said with confidence in his voice, but Greg and Nick just gave him a sarcastic 'Really?' look, since, being CSIs, they knew about this.

"Just get the first aid kit, will you?" Greg said annoyed.

Julian rolled his eyes and made his way to the car.

"How could this happen?" Greg asked while taking a look at Nick's hand.

"Ouch!" Nick exclaimed. "I don't know, this never happened before. I just had the car checked out at the shop."

"Well... Let's just be glad nobody got seriously injured..." Greg took the first aid kit Julian just brought and took care of Nick's hand. After he was done, he just now noticed Julian's face. "Julian, sit down." He made Julian sit down on a rock and took a closer look at his face.

"What is it?" Julian asked confused.

"You have glass in your face..." Greg took a tweezer out of his kit and tried to get the glass out of Julian's face. "Hold still... hold still... Julian, hold STILL!" Greg said annoyed. Julian kept dodging the tweezer. "Come on, I'll try not to hurt you."

"TRY? No way, get away from me!" He shoved away Greg's hand.

"It won't hurt much, come on, you need to get these out! Do you want to have scars on your face?"

Julian thought about it for a second. He was very vain and Greg knew that. "Alright... but... be careful."

Greg started picking the glass fragments out of Julian's face and with everyone he got, Julian exclaimed a scream, making it sound much worse than it actually was.

"There you go, wasn't that bad, huh?" Greg said with a genuine smile on his face.

Julian rolled his eyes. "Sure, you were VERY gentle..." he replied sarcastically.

" 'You're welcome...'" Greg whispered sarcastically to himself.

"I called it in but it might take a while for anyone to come out here and get us." The officer sat down on a rock.

"Well, we might as well start processing the scene then, right?" Nick said while taking his kit out of the car.

"You think you can do this with just one hand?" Greg asked his colleague.

"Damn, you're right... But I could take some pictures, maybe?"

Greg sighed. "Maybe from the body? Let's start there..."

They all went over to where the body was being buried.

"Julian, you're only supposed to take notes, alright? Don't touch anything, don't collect anything. If you find something, just tell me." Greg instructed the lab tech.

"Thanks for the hint. It'd be hard to resist myself..." Julian said in a sarcastic tone while rolling his eyes. Although he was excited to be out in the field, he didn't really care too much for touching bodies, taking blood swaps and other stuff that comes with being a CSI. He just liked feeling important, and he did when he was out in the field.

All four of them stood around the body. It was the victim they were looking for, Ellen Stewart. She was a big girl, weighing around 350 pounds.

"Wow," Julian said.

"It's never easy to see someone like that.." Greg said sympathetic.. Julian may have seen a dead body before, but Ellen has been out here for several days, her face was partially bitten off by animals. It wasn't a pretty picture.

"Yeah I mean, wow. SHE cheated on her husband? What did the husband look like, then?"

Nick, the officer and Greg looked at him.

"Show some respect, you jerk," Nick said angrily.

"I'm sooooorry..." Julian said, rolling his eyes.

Greg tossed a pair of gloves over to him. "Put them on and help me move her."

Julian stared at the gloves. "What? You told me not to touch anything!"

"Yeah but Nick can't help and I don't think we can do this alone. So come on!" Greg instructed him.

Julian was standing over the body. Despite the insensitive comment he made earlier, he felt bad for the woman. He didn't mind seeing a maimed body, but even Julian had a heart and knew that this woman didn't deserve to die.

"Alright, let's roll her around on three. One, two, three!" Greg said while helping Julian and the officer roll her. After taking pictures and processing the front of Ellen, Greg now had to process the back, especially since the entrance wound was in the front and Greg wanted to take a look at the exit wound.

Greg started processing the back. "No exit wound, so the bullet is probably inside the body."

"That's a good thing, right?" Julian asked.

"Yeah..." Greg went on processing the body while Nick was taking pictures.

Almost two hours later, they were still waiting for someone to pick them up. David didn't show up yet, either.

Nick was already done taking pictures and there was nothing else to do for him. Greg was almost done processing the scene, but still had a few traces to find.

"A tissue..." Greg picked it up. "You see that?" He asked Julian, who was following Greg at every step. "It's stained. Hopefully the killer used it to wipe off sweat or something." He put it down again, took a picture and bagged it.

"Ahem..." Julian cleared his throat.

"What is it?"

"You just picked it up and now you're taking a picture? Shouldn't it be the other way around?"

"It's okay that way, too." Greg kept walking.

Julian followed, of course. "I'll have to write this down, you know."

"What?" Greg turned around to Julian.

"You didn't follow protocol. I need to write that down. That's what I'm here for, right?"

Greg shook his head with a grin on his face. "You're here so that if the defense attorney questions our work he'll ask you about it. We did everything right, so there's nothing you could tell him."

"Yeah but if he asked about the tissue I'd have to tell him you picked it up first and then photographed it, right?"

Greg sighed. "Yeah, whatever. You do know you're on our side, though, right?"

"This has nothing to do with taking sides. Besides, I'm on justice's side."

Greg couldn't help but chuckle about that.

"Why are you laughing?" Julian asked confused. He really didn't know.

"Nothing..." Greg smiled at him.


	3. Chapter 3

Three hours have passed since the CSIs arrived and finally, help was on the way! At least they thought so, since an officer called 40 minutes ago, saying he was on his way.

"Marilyn Monroe?" Greg asked.

"Nope," Julian answered.

"Bette Davis?" Greg asked exhausted.

"No. Come on, you're better than that!"

Greg sighed. "I give up. Who were you thinking about?"

"Christina Aguilera! Blond, actress, beautiful, how many hints do you need?"

Greg tilted his head back in annoyance. "I don't know, how about 'Still alive'...?"

"I gave enough good hints! You just suck at this!" Julian replied.

"Guys, PLEASE, shut up!" Nick said from inside the car, trying to get some sleep. He was pulling a double, after all, and had nothing to do.

"Where is he? He was supposed to be here ten minutes ago!" Julian said annoyed. "Come on, let's thumb wrestle again."

Greg rolled his eyes. "No, we've done it five times, let's just wait for someone to pick us up..."

Another fifteen minutes ago, the officer finally arrived.

"Hey Steven," the officer that was waiting with the CSIs said to his colleague who finally arrived. "Thank god you're here, this guy was killing me!" he said quietly.

Another five minutes later, David came, too. "Hey guys!" he said, not knowing that they all were stuck here for hours.

"Finally!" Nick said, still sitting in the car, but with his legs being outside the open door.

"Oh my god, what happened to you?" David asked surprised after seeing Nick's injured hand and Julian's face.

"That's a long, long... long story," Greg replied. "Just get this over with, alright?"

They started loading the body inside the coroner's car and all drove away.

Arriving at the lab, Julian was babbling to Greg about how Christina Aguilera is much better than Britney Spears. Greg just nodded with an annoyed and exhausted look on his face, not listening to what he was saying.

Catherine was standing in the lobby with a big grin on her face. "There are my boys!"

Nick just nodded at her, Greg smiled at her and said, "Hey Catherine...", sounding really relieved that they finally reached the lab.

"Here are my notes, Catherine." Julian handed her his notebook. "I'm sorry, Greg, but I had to write it down. I can't lie!" Julian went away.

"Was something wrong?" Catherine asked Greg.

He just sighed. "I picked a tissue up before taking a picture, put it back and photographed it. Julian is worried this might hurt the case."

Catherine laughed. "I knew it was a good decision to have him accompany you!"

Nick just rolled his eyes with a faint smile on his face.

"But why are you here? Shouldn't you get your hand checked out at the hospital, Nicky?"

"I'll drive him there in a minute, but we wanted to drop Julian off, first... Just a few more minutes with him and I would have to give Mr. Stewart's defense attorney a call!" Greg turned around with a big smile on his face. "Come on, Nicky!"

Catherine watched them as they walked back out to drive to the hospital. She couldn't help but laugh to herself when she went back into her office.

Greg was sitting in the waiting room at the hospital while Nick was with the doctor.

"There you are, I was looking for you!" Julian said from behind.

"Oh no..." Greg said to himself before turning around. "...Julian, what are YOU doing here?"

"Catherine told me you two were here! Why didn't you wait for me?"

"Catherine... Nice..", Greg said, trying to hide the anger in his voice. "Uh... Well," he was struggling for words. "Waiting at a doctor's is never fun, we didn't want to bother you..."

"Oh come on, it's okay! We stick together! Waiting isn't too bad when you're not alone, right?" Julian patted Greg on the shoulder.

"Yeah... I guess..." Greg put the newspaper down he was just reading before Julian joined him. "Well then, let's wait together..." he said with a fake smile on his face.

Julian smiled at him. "Alright, so, Britney might sell more records, but Christina..."


	4. Chapter 4

"And then you just have to cool it for a few hours and you're good to go!" Julian said while walking behind Greg. They were back from the hospital and Julian still wasn't running out of topics to yak about.

"Oh, Sara!" Greg exclaimed. "Sorry, Julian, gotta go!" He quickly ran after Sara into ballistics.

"Alright, see you later!" Julian said with an upbeat tone in his voice. He really enjoyed the time with Greg, despite the two usually not getting along too well.

"Back already?" Sara smiled at Greg as he was rushing into the room.

"And I thought I talk much..." he said with an exhausted smile on his face.

"And you left Nick with him out there?"

"No, he's down in autopsy with our DB. What are you doing here?" Greg asked with interest.

"I brought three bullets to Bobby a few hours ago and wanted to ask him if my results are ready. But I have no idea where he went." Sara sat down.

"What's your case about?"

"Well, Catherine and I found a dead man in a back alley a few miles from the Strip. We have no motive, no suspects and, well, nothing besides those bullets. We can't even identify him." Sara looked outside the glass walls. "Where the hell's Bobby?"

A few minutes later he finally arrived.

"I'm sorry, Sara, I got held up by Julian..." Bobby rolled his eyes with a faint smile on his face. "But I got good news! These bullets belong to a registered gun."

"Wow, I didn't expect that. Who's it registered to?" Sara asked surprised.

"A... Roger Stewart." Bobby read the name from the computer and handed her a printed report.

"Wait... What?" Greg grabbed the paper before Sara's hand reached it.

"What's wrong?" Sara asked puzzled.

"Roger Stewart... That's OUR suspect!" Greg showed the report with Roger Stewart's picture on it to Sara.

Brass was interrogating Stewart after they found out a man was killed with his gun. Greg was with them, as well. Stewart was sitting in front of Brass and Greg.

"I told you already, I didn't kill my wife!" Stewart claimed.

"Actually... That's not what we're here for..." Greg pulled out pictures of the dead body Sara and Catherine found. "Your gun was used to kill this man. His time of death was estimated to be around your wife's time of death. Do you know him?"

Stewart stared at the picture. "Oh my god... That SON OF A BITCH!" Stewart stood up in rage.

Both Brass and Greg stood up, too.

"Calm down, Mr. Stewart," Brass said in a calm but determined voice and gave the police officer in the room a hand sign to stay put. Both him and Greg sat down again and made Stewart do the same.

"That's him, isn't it? He screwed my wife! We had him and his wife over to dinner several times! I trusted him! He works with my wife at the office... I... Dammit!"

Greg and Brass shared a look.

"So you're claiming you had no idea he was dead?" Greg asked suspiciously.

"OF COURSE not!" Stewart yelled at both men. "I knew Ellen had an affair... We had our problems... Like ANY couple had! But I didn't think it was someone I knew..." Tears started rolling from his cheeks.

"Mr. Stewart, you need to understand that we suspect you of murdering both your wife and him." Greg pointed at the picture. "He was shot with your gun. The one we found at your home."

After burying his crying face in his folded arms, he looked up to Greg. "But I didn't do it."

"Then how come we found the bullets from your gun inside your wife's co-worker's wounds?" Greg felt kind of bad for the man since his claims of innocence felt real. The evidence they found all pointed towards Stewart's direction, but the words coming out of his mouth just felt too sincere.

"...My lawyer advised me not to say anything 'till he gets here..."

"I know, but you need to tell us everything you know. I want to believe you, I really do. But there's overwhelming evidence pointing to you as a suspect..." Greg said in a caring voice, causing Brass to give him a confused look.

Stewart sobbed. "I didn't fire that gun for months. I only used it to practice, NEVER on humans OR animals! I swear to god! I have no idea who took it..." He claimed desperately.

"Listen. If you're innocent, we'll prove it..." Greg replied affectionately.

"Hey Sanders..." Brass said outside the interrogation room.

"Yeah?"

"What was that about? You believe his act?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, it felt sincere, don't you think?"

Brass shook his head. "No. I've seen guys like him way too often to give anyone of them the benefit of the doubt, and you shouldn't, either. Don't let this act cloud your judgment, alright?"

"It won't. I just think there's a possibility he didn't do it..."

"Listen, Greg, don't be naïve. He's playing with us. It's cute that you still believe in the good in people, but it's not there. It's time to realize this. He's got a very expensive lawyer without any scruple, he'll try ANYTHING to get off! Don't give him anything he could use against us in court." Brass went off, leaving Greg wondering where the cynicism was coming from. Brass always was the cynic kind, but he never tried to disillusion others like that.

Right after the interrogation, Greg went to see Bobby in ballistics again. "Nick. You're here?"

"I called you five minutes ago, why didn't you answer?" Nick asked his younger colleague.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was in the interrogation room and didn't hear the phone. What's up?"

"You won't believe this!" Bobby chimed in. "Your victim was not shot with the husband's gun!"

Greg looked surprised but also relieved. This actually WAS good news, maybe the husband was telling the truth after all.

"She was shot with an unregistered .38 that was used in a robbery a few weeks ago. The store clerk was shot and survived, but they never found the robber," Bobby explained.

"...But what does it all mean? Stewart shot the man he allegedly didn't even know had an affair with his wife, but not his wife? It all doesn't make any sense..." Greg said confused.

"Well David said the wife was killed a day before the other guy was killed... Did you find out what his name was?" Nick asked Greg.

"It's Miles Jones. His wife is meeting Brass in an hour."

"Alright, I'll ask her some questions, then."

"No, that's okay. I'll do it." Greg left the room.

"Why didn't you report him missing?" Brass asked Stacey Jones, Miles Jones' wife. They were sitting in his office.

"Because he wasn't missing... He was supposed to be with his Brother in New Jersey. He said he wanted to surprise him for his 30th birthday..." Stacey replied while remaining her composure. It was obvious she had been crying before she met Brass, but she didn't do it now.

"Mrs. Jones, you know Ellen and Roger Stewart, right?" Greg joined the conversation.

She nodded. "What does this have to do with them?"

"Your husband was shot with Stewart's handgun," Brass answered.

"...What? I... I don't understand. Why would he...? Oh lord... No! NO! Ellen and Miles, they had an affair, right?" She said while she started crying.

Greg looked surprised that she figured it out so quick. "...We suspect that, yes."

"Oh god... I never thought Ellen would be a threat to me! I mean, she wasn't exactly... a man's dream... That's why I didn't think it was a bad idea that they spent so much time together. I thought they were just really good friends..."

"Well, do you know of anyone who might've wanted to hurt your husband?" Greg asked, causing Brass to instantly look at him.

"...Huh?"

"We didn't find any evidence yet to confirm that Mr. Stewart actually pulled the trigger. Do you know about anyone who didn't get along with your husband?"

"...No, no, I don't think so. Why do you think Roger didn't do it?"

"Mrs. Jones, thank you for your time. If we need anything or find something new about the case, I'll call you." Brass escorted her out.

When he went back in again, he closed the door behind him. "What the hell was that about?"

"What? I just asked her some questions." Greg didn't understand why Brass was so furious.

"We have a lead in this case and we'll damn well follow it! If we reach a dead end, we try other angles! Do I really have to explain your job to you?" Brass yelled.

"I AM following a lead! But it's not Stewart, it's Stewart's gun! We have to keep an open mind on this! As long as we can't place the gun in Stewart's hand, we don't know who killed our victim!"

"An open mind? Oh, cut the crap! You feel bad for the guy because he's a pretty good actor, that's all!"

"Alright, I admit it doesn't look good for him, but that doesn't mean it's impossible he's innocent, that's all I'm trying to say! I want to do this the right way," Greg explained himself.

"Well then DO IT right! Because right now it looks like you're about to do the opposite!" Brass opened the door for Greg to leave.


	5. Chapter 5

"Hey Greg, you got a minute?" Catherine walked into the break room.

Greg was sitting at the desk, drinking a cup of coffee and reading a newspaper. "Sure."

"I just heard about what happened between you and Brass. What's this all about?"

He put the newspaper down. "It's nothing. We just disagree on how the case should be handled."

"You're sure that's all it is?"

"Catherine, it's fine. I don't know about Brass, but I'm fine. We had a discussion about it and didn't agree. No harm done." He smiled at her.

"The way I understand it, you're relying on a shady statement your main suspect made about not being responsible for the murder of his cheating wife." She sat down next to him.

Greg rolled his eyes. "That's what he told you? Come on, Cath, you know me better than that! I just don't want to prejudge a man who just lost his wife. I know his story is contradicting and the evidence we have at the moment is not making him look like an innocent man, but I want to consider this case from all sides, that's all."

"Alright..." Catherine stood up. "But please be careful. We all had a case like that, when we just needed to believe the suspect. And it never ended well..." After giving him a concerned smile, she left the room.

Sara's and Greg's case were basically one case, so they decided to handle it that way. Catherine signed herself off the case since a new one was already waiting for her and she thought Greg, Nick and Sara would be able to handle it alone.

"Hey Julian, did you process the shirt already?" Greg walked inside the DNA lab, hoping for good news.

"Yeah, it's over there. But come, take a look," Julian said.

Greg looked over to where his report was lying but decided to take a look at whatever it was Julian wanted to show him.

"A five pages interview with Christina Aguilera! I'll give it to you once I'm done reading and swooning over it, alright?" Julian laughed.

Greg rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure. So that's my report?" He took a look at the report.

"Yup. The sweat from the shirt doesn't match your suspect's DNA. Sorry, I don't think he did it." Before realizing Greg was already gone, he continued. "She talks about her new boyfriend. Meh. She wouldn't be as excited if she knew me, don't you think?" He kept talking, not knowing he was talking to himself.

"It's not Stewart's DNA on the shirt?" Sara asked surprised.

"No. And the blood on the sleeves? It's Miles Jones' blood!" Greg said while putting the reports on the light table.

"Don't get too excited, yet, Greg. There's a lot of possible scenarios. He might've hired someone to do the job for him." Nick didn't try to burst Greg's bubble, but he didn't believe in Stewart's innocence, either.

"Or he had nothing to do with it," Greg replied.

"Or it's none of the two. What's this about, boys?" Sara asked a little confused. She didn't hear about the altercation Brass and Greg had earlier.

"Nothing... Did Mandy get any prints off Stewart's gun?" Greg asked, not elaborating on Sara's question.

"Only a smudged partial. She tried her best but it wasn't enough to compare it to any print. But it was a loop, Stewart's prints only have arches."

Nick and Greg shared a look.

"Okay, okay, don't look at me like that! Maybe he really didn't kill that man, but that still doesn't rule him out as Ellen's killer!" Nick said with a smile on his face.

"Would someone PLEASE tell me what's going on here?" Sara asked confused. "Are you betting on our cases again?"

"No..." Greg chuckled. "Brass just said something... I thought Stewart was innocent and he didn't. I bet he'll hate hearing these news!"

"Now slow down a bit, Greggo. Let's try to find a new lead before you confront Brass about that, alright?" Nick patted him on the shoulder.

"...Whatever." Sara rolled her eyes, not completely understanding what it all was about. "We didn't get too much evidence off of Ellen. We have the bullet, but no fibers or stuff like that."

"But I did find some strands of hair on her..." Greg went through the files. "Have they been processed yet?"

Sara went through some files as well. "They're not listed here. Are you sure you lifted them off of her?"

"Yeah, of course! I lifted them and then I..." Greg now remembered. "Excuse me!"

* * *

><p><p>

"Julian! Remember the strands of hair I lifted from our victim in the desert?" Greg rushed into the DNA lab.

Julian got startled. "Geez, Greg! Where's the fire?"

"The hair, you remember?"

"Yeah, sure. But I'm not done processing it yet."

"...You already started?" Greg asked surprised.

"Uhm... Sure..." Julian said with a weird face.

Greg knew that face. "You have NO idea what I'm talking about, right?"

"No, sir."

"Oh boy..." Greg said annoyed. "I lifted the hairs and handed it to you, you were supposed to place it in the evidence kit, remember?"

"Oh, sure! Yeah, yeah I remember."

"...So? Did you put them in the kit? Because they're nowhere to be found."

"..." Julian thought about it for a second.

"...Yeah?"

"Uhm... Thinking about it, I don't think you gave them to me..."

"Julian! You LOST evidence?"

"...N...No! I don't think I did!" Julian tried to talk himself out of it, but sucked at that.

"It was before we rolled her, try to remember! I lifted them off of her left leg and handed it to you, then."

"...The leg or the evidence?" Julian laughed, trying to lighten up Greg's mood, but he didn't find it funny. "Alright, alright... Let me think about it. You kept talking and talking about the body, how you thought she was lying out there for some days, what might've happened to her, yadda yadda yadda."

"...And?" Greg was about to lose his patience.

"And you were about to hand me something else... I don't remember what, though." Julian said with a brooding face impression.

"...One of her shoes."

"Yeah, exactly! Rather cheap ones, the heel broke off and they smelled a bit like cheesy feet with a hint of decomposition, it was..." He was interrupted.

"Julian! PLEASE concentrate! I handed you the shoe, and then?"

"I was holding the hairs in one hand and the shoe in the other, and you handed me her handbag... So I needed a free hand and..." After thinking for what felt like an eternity to Greg, but probably only was about a minute, Julian grabbed inside his back pocket. "And I put them in my pocket with the intention to put it in the evidence kit when you gave me a chance to. Because you kept talking and handing me stuff so that I..." Again he was interrupted.

"You put... evidence... in your pocket... and didn't think about returning it, not even when we reached the lab? What if you went home, washed those pants and destroyed the evidence that way?"

"That's ridiculous!" Julian said outraged.

"...Oh yeah, how's that?"

"Because I always check my pockets before I put my pants in the washing machine. I once washed 27$, I lost it all! Ever since I..." One last time he got interrupted.

"That's very unfortunate, but could you please hurry with the hairs? I need to know who they belong to!" Greg left the lab irritated.


	6. Chapter 6

Greg was in the break room, going through some files about his case. He went through everything that appeared to be impossible, he even did a background check on both his victims and Ellen's husband.

"What are you reading?" Sara went in, fixing herself a cup of coffee.

"About their lives," Greg answered.

"You find anything helpful yet?" She sat down next to him.

"No, I don't think so." He pushed the files aside to prop his elbows up on the desk and rub his face. "We're not getting anywhere."

"So, what's going on with you and Brass, anyway?" Sara asked while drinking her coffee.

Greg sighed. "He thinks I'm being naïve for believing the husband."

"Well, are you?"

"I don't think I am. The way the case is turning out it seems like I was right."

"But you didn't know that when you talked to Brass, what made you so sure he didn't do it? As far as I remember, both you and Nick were sure he did it before you found the body. What changed?"

"I don't know." He shrugged. "His grief just felt real and sincere..."

Sara gave him a smile. "Don't you think that IS kind of naïve, basing your judgment about the case on a grieving husband? You should know better than that."

"I'm not a greenhorn anymore, Sara. I know people lie and I know basically anyone is capable of murder."

"Then why do I feel like I have to tell you this? Listen, I know what it's like to lose all faith in humanity. It's a dark place. It's why I quit this job years ago." She put her hand on Greg's shoulder. "But we have to keep our objectivity. It doesn't mean we shouldn't trust anyone, but we should be careful who to trust and what to believe."

"I'll be fine, don't worry about me," Greg said while getting off his chair, grabbing the files he read in and leaving the room a tad annoyed. He appreciated Sara trying to look after him, but at the same time felt that he didn't need to be looked after. They all processed the previous events rather well, but the feeling of being the victim never really disappeared.

* * *

><p>Greg now was sitting at a light table, still reading up on the lives of the people involved with Ellen Stewart when Julian came in.<p>

"What are you doing?" He asked, leaning over Greg's shoulder.

"Reading," Greg replied without looking up. "Are you done yet with the hairs?"

"Mhm." Julian put the report on what Greg was reading. "Hank Lloyd. You know him?"

"Uh-uh. Why is he in the system?"

"Sexual harassment..."

Greg look up to Julian. "Alright... thank you."

* * *

><p>"Mr. Llyod, do you know Ellen Stewart?" Brass asked in a rather harsh tone.<p>

"Never heard of her," the man said rather nervous.

"Really? Then how come we found your hair on her?" Nick asked, showing him their report.

"...Alright, I know her. We're co-workers."

"You are? She's an office assistant in a law firm and you're what, a lawyer?" Brass said, mocking him.

"I'm a mailman. She always has to sign bills of delivery."

"And the last time you delivered something you rubbed your head on her leg? Is that how your hairs got there?" Brass said, again mocking the man.

"I have no idea how they got there! I never touched her, don't believe that bitch!" Lloyd yelled.

"She didn't file a complaint, genius, she's dead!" Brass tossed pictures of her dead body on the desk in front of Lloyd.

"...Dead?" Lloyd sighed as he leaned back. "That's too bad."

"Yeah? How's that?" Brass asked.

"No, I mean, she was a nice girl, that's all. What happened to her? Do you know who did it?"

"Not yet, but I like you for it..."

"What? Wait! No! I didn't kill her!" He laughed humorlessly. "One time I come on too strong on a girl and she misinterprets it and I'm a suspect for all my life... That's how it works, huh?"

"It says in your file you broke her nose. Is that what you meant when you said you 'came on too strong'?" Nick said with an irritated look on his face.

"It wasn't like that..."

"Spare us, we've heard it all. Now come on, what did you do to Ellen Stewart?" Brass was getting impatient.

"...Alright, I flirted with her. She said she was married and that was it. But I SWEAR I didn't kill her!"

"Be more specific. Did you just flirt or did you 'come on too strong' again?"

"We, uh, were making out in the restroom. When I tried to get her pants off she said she's married and went back to work. I swear that's how it happened! Nothing else happened!"

"Yeah well let's see what our investigation's saying," Nick said while getting up.

* * *

><p>"How did it go with Lloyd?" Sara asked while Nick was walking into the break room.<p>

"He swears he didn't hurt her, but he also said the girl he harassed misinterpreted him breaking her nose, so..." Nick sat down exhausted. It's been a very long day and dealing with all these scumbags was just getting to him sometimes. "She rejected him, so he had a motive. And since he broke a girl's nose for rejecting him we know he's capable of hurting people."

"Does he have an alibi?"

"Well, he's been at home watching TV by himself when both Ellen and Miles were killed, does that count?" Nick laughed.

"So he had opportunity. It doesn't look good for him."

"Mhm..." Nick rubbed his tired eyes.

"Say... How are you doing lately?" Sara asked Nick when she noticed the exhaustion in his face. It's been there for weeks, but she only now noticed it.

"Hm? Oh, I'm fine, thank you." He smiled at her.

Sara gave him that kind of smile she was known for. "You're sure? You look tired. How's your hand?"

"Really, I'm fine. Yeah, I'm a little tired, but that comes with the working hours, I guess." He laughed a bit. "The hand's fine, it doesn't hurt."

"Are you having trouble sleeping?" She asked, trying to dig deeper.

"What is this? Am I being interrogated now?" He laughed rather nervously. "I'm fine, I'm just having a bad week, I guess."

She touched Nick's hand, saying, "Okay, but if you need anything, I'm here," and got up and walked towards the room. "Now come on, let's tell Greg about Lloyd."

* * *

><p>After asking Henry, Sara and Nick learned that Greg was down in autopsy.<p>

"Don't tell me we have a new body," Sara said with fear in her voice.

"No, don't worry. But David just discovered something," Greg answered with a smile on his face.

They both looked at David, waiting for him to spill the news.

"It wasn't showing until now." With the help of Greg and Sara they rolled her.

"Looks like a footprint..." Nick took some pictures.

"I'm thinking the killer kicked her when she was already dead..." David said with a sad look on his face.

"The area around the body looked as if she might've been rolled, he probably kicked her to roll her into the grave he dug up," Greg explained.

"A heavy girl like her... It would've been impossible for one man to drag her out into the desert while she was dead. She was probably killed where you found him, right?" David said while looking at her.

"Yes, it's our primary, but we didn't find anything useful. No tire marks, no signs of a struggle, nothing," Nick answered.

"She's been lying there for days, mother nature did it's best to cover up all the evidence, I guess..." David said while writing something down and then walking out.

"What shoe size is this? 10, 11 maybe?" Sara asked the two men, looking at them.

"The husband's a 9, and Lloyd..." Greg looked in the files. "Wears size 11!"

* * *

><p>The conviction for sexual harassment several months ago, the fact that hairs were found on the victim and that the shoe size of a footprint on the body matches his was enough for the judge to sign a warrant for Hank Lloyd's shoes. It wasn't enough for him to sign a search warrant for his home, though.<p>

"That's some nice sneakers you got there..." Nick said with a grin on his face, while going through Lloyd's shoe collection. He only had four pairs so it didn't take long. "You probably thought it was smart not to wear your work boots to kill her, right?"

Lloyd was standing next to a police officer, nervously biting his nails.

"If these shoes are a match to the print we found on Ellen's back, you're going down for murder, my friend..." Nick held up the shoes, still grinning.


	7. Chapter 7

"He's still claiming he didn't do it," Nick said rather amused.

"Did he explain how his shoe print got on her, then?" Greg asked. They were sitting at a light table when Sara joined them.

"We got him?" She asked joyful.

"We do. He says he only helped dumping her body in the desert but didn't kill her, but he couldn't remember who it was he helped..." Nick laughed. They heard lots of weird stories from people claiming their innocence, but not remembering who they helped dump a body was an excuse they never heard before.

"Well then we'll just have to find out who killed Miles Jones. I'm still liking the husband for this." She glanced over to Greg.

He noticed the look, but acted as if he didn't.

"Well let's see. The gun and a shirt were found inside the husband's home, but somebody else must've worn that shirt. It has the victim's blood on it, though. And GSR. What does that tell us?" Nick asked.

"That whoever wore the shirt probably pulled the trigger..." Greg said while looking over to Sara.

"But who? And how did they get the gun and shirt out of the house and back inside?" Sara said, returning the look.

"Hey guys. Greg, how are you doing?" Julian walked in with a smile on his face.

Greg looked at him a bit confused. "Good, thank you..."

"I processed the tissue you found on the scene, Greg. Remember? You picked it up before photographing it and I..." He was interrupted.

"Yeah I remember. You finished processing it just NOW? The case's already solved! What took you so long?" Greg said annoyed.

"I'm sorry, I just was... busy..." Julian said, quickly changing the subject, "Anyways, it's unknown male DNA. It also had very small drops of blood on it but I was able to pull DNA from it, it belongs to your other victim... Johnson?" Julian handed Greg the report.

He quickly grabbed it. "You mean Jones?"

"Uh-huh. Uh right, before I forget. The unknown DNA I found matches the one I found inside the shirt, the stained one, remember?"

"What?" Nick said surprised.

"You know, guys, I have a theory..." Julian sat down next to Greg. "What if whoever killed this Jones guy later went on to kill the fat chick?"

Sara just stared at Julian in disbelieve. Did he just call the victim 'fat chick'? "Well, nice theory, but we already know who killed her and his DNA doesn't match the one on the tissue. And could you now please leave and let us do our job?"

"...Sure." He stood up and whispered into Greg's ear, "Women and their PMS, right?", and left the room.

"Wow, since when is he in love with you?" Nick said jokingly.

"Ever since we were out in the desert he acts like that. I have no idea what's going on with him, but it's getting more and more annoying... Anyways, what he found could actually help us with the case. We just have to find this mystery man and the case is solved!" Greg said excited.

"But how do we find him?"

* * *

><p><p>

Nick and Sara accompanied Brass to the law firm Ellen and Miles were working at. They figured talking to the people they worked with and finding out who Miles hang out with might help them find whoever was present on both crime scenes. They had no idea how the tissue with this unknown man on it ended up at the scene Ellen was found at, but they figured the best way to find out was to find who put it there. Meanwhile, Greg was asking Hank Lloyd, the man they just booked for killing Ellen, about the tissue, hoping he knew something.

Greg showed Lloyd a picture of the tissue. "You recognize this?"

"It's a hanky. What is this, IQ test?" Lloyd asked annoyed.

"It was found at the crime scene, but it had foreign DNA on it. Do you know how it got there?"

"How should I know? Some hiker probably tossed it. Am I being charged for pollution now, too?" He asked sarcastically.

"The DNA we found on this tissue was also found at another crime scene. Miles Jones, do you know him?" Greg asked while showing him a picture of Jones' body.

"He works at that law firm, too. He's dead?"

"Does he look alive to you?"

Lloyd laughed. "Wow, you cops can be funny, huh? I told you I didn't kill Ellen! Whoever did was probably the one leaving the tissue in the desert."

"And you don't remember who it was, right? Your friend isn't here to get you out of this situation, so why should you cover for him? Why should you go to jail for at least 25 years for something you didn't do?" Greg leaned forward a bit.

"I told you I don't remember his name..." Lloyd said, brooding over what Greg just said.

"Is it really worth it? What did he offer you to help get rid of the body? A few thousand bucks? I hope you hid them well because you might need them if you ever get out of jail."

"Alright..." Lloyd ran his fingers through his hair. "It's Roger Stewart. He killed Ellen and asked me to help him get rid of the body."

"...Really?" Greg said, not believing the man.

"He gave me 20,000$ if I keep my mouth shut, I swear!"

"The DNA we found is not his. It can't be him."

"What are you, stupid? I just TOLD you he did it and you don't believe me because the DNA on a tissue that might have NOTHING to do with that case doesn't match?" Lloyd was getting angry.

"No. I don't believe you because you kept lying to us. You saw an opportunity to save your neck and went for it. You're trying to convince us you didn't kill her, but you did, right?" Greg was ready to get up.

"NO!" Lloyd yelled, rising up from his chair. "I DIDN'T kill Ellen! Roger did! You HAVE to believe me!" He pushed over the desk.

"Sit down!" An officer said roughly while trying to restrain him.

"I didn't kill her!" He kept yelling. He managed to fight off the officer, pushed Greg to the ground and ran out the room, pushing down another officer standing outside the room.


	8. Chapter 8

The two officers, as well as Greg, ran after him.

Lloyd was standing in the lobby, with his back against a wall with one arm around a young woman's neck, the other one stretched out. "Don't come closer or I'll KILL her!"

They stopped a few feet away from him, both officers and two others that were in the lobby, pointing their gun at Lloyd.

"Alright, just don't hurt her!" Greg said, trying to calm him down.

"I didn't kill Ellen, you HAVE to believe me!" He said desperately. The young woman in his arm was crying deeply.

"Okay... I want to believe you but I can't if you hurt her now!" Greg said while coming a few inches closer. "You want to convince me you're not a murderer, then let her go."

"Tell them to let me go!" Lloyd was looking to the exit.

"I'm sorry but I can't do this. Now let her go. Let's talk about Roger's involvement in the case, inside." Greg pointed towards the interrogation room they were coming from, getting another few inches closer.

"Stay away from me!" Lloyed yelled, pressing his arm against the woman's neck with more pressure.

"Okay, okay!" Greg took two steps back.

"If I let her go these guys will be all over me! I can't let her go!" He shook his head rapidly.

"Well then... How about we go inside the interrogation room, alone? Just you and me. You can tell me what happened with Roger and Ellen. I promise they won't hurt you, alright?" Greg suggested, trying to hide the fear in his voice and eyes. He just wanted to get the woman to safety and thought this was the only way to do it without jeopardizing her.

"And then? You throw me into jail and throw away the key!" He cried desperately.

"Listen, if you really didn't kill Ellen and won't hurt this woman, you won't go away to jail forever... You can get a deal, alright? You'd help us find a murderer!" Greg said, trying to convince him.

Lloyd nodded. "I want a deal, yes..."

"You'll only get it if you don't hurt this woman. Let her go and we'll talk about it."

"I TOLD you I don't want these guys all over me!"

Greg sighed. He didn't want to do this but thought it was necessary. "Alright, then, we'll go into the interrogation room and talk about it. But they will arrest you afterwards, do you understand that?"

Lloyd at first tightened the grip he had the woman in but then loosened it a bit again and nodded.

Greg gave the officers a hand sign to put their guns down but also a look to let them know they should watch Lloyd every step of the way.

"Get out of the way!" Lloyd said, still with the woman in front of his body, going backwards after he passed the officers to make sure they won't try anything. Greg followed him to the interrogation room.

* * *

><p><p>

"You get in first!" Lloyd demanded.

Greg entered. "Now please let her go."

Lloyd shoved the young woman away from him and entered the interrogation room as well, closing the door and pushing the desk he pushed over earlier in front of it to make sure the officers wouldn't follow them.

Greg didn't have a good feeling about this, but figured since Lloyd was unarmed he'd be okay. He was standing at the other side of the room. "Okay, so tell me about it. How did Roger approach you?"

"He was visiting his wife at work three weeks ago when I was there. He saw me flirting with her..." Lloyd sat down on the ground. "I thought he'd rip me a new one but instead he asked me about my tattoos... He then asked if I'd like to earn some money... He gave me a ride home and explained what he wanted me to do. He had planned to kill her since she wanted a divorce and it would've cost him much more money than he offered me. All I had to do was drive her out there. Told her we'd be alone there so that we can... You know. Then Roger joined us and shot her. He picked up everything he thought could be used as evidence against him, you know, cartridge cases or stuff like that. He even took the sand that was stained with blood... He brought a box and a shovel for this."

After Lloyed stopped talking, it looked like he was lost in his thoughts, so Greg asked, "What happened then?"

"I dug up a pit to cover her in there... I then had to get her in it. She was so heavy, I had to kick her into the pit. Roger was already gone, but I was supposed to bury her with the sand, but the pit I dug wasn't deep enough, so I just left. I swear I didn't kill her. He did."

Greg nodded. "Alright, I believe you. I'll have the husband arrested. But first I need to get an officer in here to arrest you, okay?"

Lloyd stood up. "I don't want to go to jail again..."

"Talk to your lawyer, you can get a deal and maybe won't have to go to jail at all." Greg knew that wasn't about to happen since he played a pretty big part in Ellen's murder, since he lured her to the scene. Also he had a criminal record. He'd get less jail time with helping identify the real murder at best. But Greg needed him to believe that, or else he might try anything to escape.

"I'm gonna leave the room now and get an officer in to cuff you." Greg slowly walked up to the door, but Lloyd was standing in the way.

"Hank, please. I trusted you, now you have to trust me."

Lloyd finally stepped to the side, giving Greg the chance to open the door.

The officers stormed inside and cuffed him.

After they walked him out, Greg slowly sat down on the ground outside.

"Are you alright?" An officer asked him.

Greg nodded. "I'm fine."

* * *

><p><p>

Catherine and Greg were sitting in the break room. She had her hand on his shoulder and a smile on her face when Brass, Sara and Nick stormed in.

"What the hell happened in that interrogation room?" Brass said furious.

"Why did you tell them, Catherine?" Greg asked rather annoyed. He didn't want Brass to know about this, not after his speech about him being too naïve and trusting people when they don't deserve it.

"Why didn't you let my men handle this situation? They would've been fine!" Brass yelled at him.

"Jim..." Catherine tried to intervene.

"No, it's alright, Cath. I was just trying to protect the hostage! He didn't have a weapon, he was just desperately trying to get out of this situation!" Greg tried to explain why he went into that interrogation room with a dangerous criminal, without any backup.

"He could've killed you, you know that?" Nick said concerned. He wasn't angry, just worried.

"Come on, guys! The room has glass walls. Four officers were standing around the room in case he tried anything! He was unarmed and Lloyd might be a scumbag, but he's not a murderer!"

That actually did make sense to Sara. She wasn't sure she'd have taken that risk, but it sounded like Greg had the situation under control.

"What are you talking about? He murdered Ellen Stewart!" Brass was still outraged. If he would've been there, the situation would've ended differently.

"He didn't. He told me what happened and I believe him. And because I made him go back into the interrogation room we have it on tape," Greg replied confident.

"Oh great! Because YOU believe him he's telling the truth, I assume? And who did he accuse?" Brass asked rather sarcastic.

"Roger Stewart..."

Brass didn't know what to say. Greg was sure the husband had nothing to do with Ellen's murder, and suddenly he changed his mind because some criminal said he did it. "So you admit you were wrong earlier?"

Greg nodded. "I think I am."

Brass smirked. "Alright, fair enough. Let's get the husband back here, maybe we can finally close this case."

Greg noticed the gloating look on Brass' face but didn't really care. It was never about being right or wrong for him, he just wanted to trust his instinct. He was rather disappointed that Stewart's crying about the loss of his wife actually was an act, though. "Did you find anything interesting at the office?"

"We did." Sara stepped forward. "Betty Haim, Ellen's best friend at work, claims that Ellen and Miles didn't have an affair. They had a one night stand over six months ago, but right now she was seeing one of the lawyers at the firm, Carl Hemsworth. He wasn't there when we arrived, he went on vacation the day Miles died. Convenient, isn't it?"

Greg looked up to them. "Well then let's try to get his DNA!"

* * *

><p><p>

Brass called at Carl Hemsworth home. His wife was answering. When asked about his whereabouts, she claimed he was visiting his aunt in Reno. Brass asked for her phone number and immediately called her. The aunt claimed she didn't hear from Carl for at least three months.

When confronted with this information, his wife claimed she had no idea he had been lying to her.

Brass asked her to come down the station to talk to him and also asked her for something with his DNA on it, claiming to file a missing person's report. He didn't want to tell her he suspected him of murder, yet. They had nothing solid against him but rumors in the firm he was working at.

"Thanks for coming, Mrs. Hemsworth." Brass shook her hand.

"I brought a tooth brush, I hope you can get his DNA from it?" She sobbed when she handed him the tooth brush.

"That's perfect, thank you."

* * *

><p><p>

DNA quickly came back. Carl Hemsworth's DNA was indeed found both inside the shirt they found at Stewart's home and on the tissue at Ellen's murder scene. It was a safe bet that he did kill Miles Jones. The only thing the CSIs didn't know was why. And how he managed to get the gun and the shirt back into Stewart's closet. And his whereabouts, of course.

Brass and Greg questioned Stewart about what Hank Lloyd said about his involvement in Ellen's death.

"Well, do you have an alibi?" Brass asked him. He claimed that he's never met Hank Lloyd and had nothing to do with Ellen's death.

"...I was at home... Alone," he said.

"Where did you get the gun from?" Greg asked Ellen's husband.

"What gun? I didn't kill her! You said you believed me!"

"Well I don't anymore. Why did you transfer 10,000$ to Lloyds account, when you don't even know him?" Greg pulled out a copy of Lloyds bank statement.

"Heh, that was stupid of you," Brass said amused.

"Now, tell us about Carl Hemsworth," Greg said.

"...What about him? He's a lawyer at my wife's office."

"We found his DNA on the shirt we found in your closet."

"...What?"

"We believe he wanted to frame you for the murder, but we're not sure why. Rumor has it him and your wife had an affair, not her and Miles Jones."

When Greg told him his theory, he didn't seem too surprised. He just kept a rather neutral face impression.

"What's wrong?" Brass asked, "You don't seem too surprised that he wanted to frame you, do you?"

Stewart looked away nervously.

"You knew all along! That's why you killed her?" Brass was getting excited. "Where's Hemsworth? Did you kill him, too?"

Stewart stared at Greg and Brass with evil in his eyes. "I'm not saying anything without my lawyer..." Stewart laid back with his arms crossed over his body.

* * *

><p><p>

Nick pondered over the evidence and crime scene pictures. When he first took a look at it he saw something he couldn't figure out, but with everything they knew now, he had the feeling it was important after all. He just wasn't sure WHAT it was he saw.

He went through everything when he finally reached what he was looking for.

"Sara!" Nick called from inside the layout room.

"Yeah?" She went in.

"I think I know where Hemsworth is..."

* * *

><p><p>

Nick found a number at Stewart's house. It was written on a piece of paper that was lying on the end table in his bedroom. Nick wasn't sure what to make of it when he collected it, but felt it might be important, so he took pictures of it.

Now that they thought Stewart knew about the affair all along, Nick figured it out. The numbers were the number of a storage room Stewart rented two weeks ago. They immediately sent a unit down there and Nick and Sara went along with them.

They prepared for the worse, they even told David to meet them there.

Nick gave one of the officers a sign to open the storage room. They all went in with their weapons drawn.

"That smell can't be good," said Sara while turning on the lights.

* * *

><p><p>

Brass' phone was ringing. Greg and him were still with Stewart, waiting for his lawyer to be able to continue talking to him.

"Brass." He got up as he answered. "Mhm..." He looked over to Stewart. "He's alive? Great."

Greg looked up to Brass.

"We found Carl Hemsworth." Brass grinned at Stewart. "He's alive. He'll tell us everything we need to know. Let's go."

An officer helped Stewart get up and escorted him out.

"Is he going to be okay?" Greg asked the Captain.

Brass nodded. "He's been roughed up pretty good, but he'll be fine. Now come on, let's find out what really happened between them."


	9. Chapter 9

Brass and Greg arrived at the hospital 20 minutes later.

Hemsworth was cuffed to his bed and already talking to Sara and Nick.

"We wanted to start a new life somewhere in the South. We had no idea where we'd wanted to go yet, but we just knew we wanted to be together. But Ellen knew her husband wouldn't let her go that easily, so we decided to give him no choice... It was Ellen's idea to frame him with Miles' murder..."

"Why him? How did you decide it was Miles who had to die for your plan?" Sara asked.

"Because it needed to look real. It was supposed to look like an act of jealousy. Miles and Ellen were really close, we thought he was perfect for the plan..." Hemsworth tried to explain something neither of the CSIs could comprehend.

"You chose him BECAUSE they were close...?" Nick asked almost in disbelieve.

"He was a nice guy but... We needed to be together. So I did it. I killed him and she placed the gun and the shirt in the closet. The next day we tried to play cool. I was supposed to be on vacation, after all, so I checked into a hotel. I couldn't go home. The day after that day we were supposed to meet up at the hotel. But she didn't show up. Instead, her husband came... He forced me to come with him, he had a gun and all... So I did. He beat me up in that storage room and left me there to die..." Hemsworth kept talking and talking. They weren't even sure he realized he was just confessing to a murder, due to the fact that he went a few days without eating and drinking, but they were just glad he kept spilling his guts out.

"What about the tissue?" Nick pulled a picture of it and showed it to him. "Do you know how it ended up at Ellen's murder scene?"

Hemsworth took a good look at it. "I gave it to her. She wanted something from me for the day we weren't able to see each other, the day after the murder... Can you take me home now, please?"

They now were sure he didn't know what he was actually doing right now.

"I'm sorry, you won't be getting home for a long time, Carl..." Brass said while walking out the room.

* * *

><p>Greg sat in front of his locker. It's been a long, complicated case and he was exhausted. He was looking forward to his bed, to finally get the long-overdue sleep.<p>

"There you are!" Julian walked in.

Greg sighed. "Not now, Julian. Can this wait until tomorrow?"

"I just wanted to check on you. I heard what happened with the suspect in interrogation!" He sat down next to Greg. "Are you alright?"

Greg looked at Julian, not knowing what to say or how to act. He seemed to be truly worried. Greg couldn't remember Julian showing any sign of caring for anyone else but himself – and maybe Ray - before. "I... Uhm... Yeah." He nodded. "I'm fine."

"Well I'm really glad to hear that." Julian looked into Greg's eyes.

An uncomfortable silence followed.

"...Okay..." Greg said a bit anxious. What the hell was going on with Julian? "And you... you're alright, too?" He asked because he didn't know what else to say.

Julian nodded while smiling at Greg. "Yeah, now that I know you're alright, I am..."

"Good... good..." Greg said with a factitious smile on his face.

Another uncomfortable silence followed, then Julian gave Greg a hug.

He winced, not knowing what was going on. He had a rattled look on his face.

Julian gently stroke Greg's shoulder and got up. "Have a nice day, Greg." He left, leaving Greg very confused. After sitting in the locker room for a few minutes, his puzzled impression not leaving his face, Greg finally got up and went home, trying to forget the whole day, especially the last few minutes with Julian.

* * *

><p>Ende.<p> 


End file.
